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Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §6.75.1-6.75.4

Syracusan Fortifications and the Embassies to Kamarina

Passage 691 of 917 · Greek

Summary

The Syracusans reinforce their city's defenses and send a counter-embassy to Kamarina to oppose the Athenians, where Hermocrates speaks before the assembly to prejudice them against Athens.

§6.75.1ἐτείχιζον δὲ καὶ οἱ Συρακόσιοι ἐν τῷ χειμῶνι πρός τε τῇ πόλει, τὸν Τεμενίτην ἐντὸς ποιησάμενοι, τεῖχος παρὰ πᾶν τὸ πρὸς τὰς Ἐπιπολὰς ὁρῶν, ὅπως μὴ δι’ ἐλάσσονος εὐαποτείχιστοι ὦσιν, ἢν ἄρα σφάλλωνται, καὶ τὰ Μέγαρα φρούριον, καὶ ἐν τῷ Ὀλυμπιείῳ ἄλλο· καὶ τὴν θάλασσαν προυσταύρωσαν πανταχῇ ᾗ ἀποβάσεις ἦσαν.
During the winter, the Syracusans also built a wall adjacent to their city, enclosing the Temenites within it, along the whole extent facing Epipolae, so that they might not, if they should happen to be defeated, be easily blockaded within too narrow a space; they also fortified Megara as a garrison, and built another fort at the Olympieum; and they drove palisades into the sea everywhere where there were landing-places.
§6.75.2καὶ τοὺς Ἀθηναίους εἰδότες ἐν τῇ Νάξῳ χειμάζοντας ἐστράτευσαν πανδημεὶ ἐπὶ τὴν Κατάνην, καὶ τῆς τε γῆς αὐτῶν ἔτεμον καὶ τὰς τῶν Ἀθηναίων σκηνὰς καὶ τὸ στρατόπεδον ἐμπρήσαντες ἀνεχώρησαν ἐπ’ οἴκου.
And knowing that the Athenians were wintering in Naxos, they marched with their entire force against Catana, and having ravaged part of their land and burnt the tents and the camp of the Athenians, they returned home.
§6.75.3καὶ πυνθανόμενοι τοὺς Ἀθηναίους ἐς τὴν Καμάριναν κατὰ τὴν ἐπὶ Λάχητος γενομένην ξυμμαχίαν πρεσβεύεσθαι, εἴ πως προσαγάγοιντο αὐτούς, ἀντεπρεσβεύοντο καὶ αὐτοί· ἦσαν γὰρ ὕποπτοι αὐτοῖς οἱ Καμαριναῖοι μὴ προθύμως σφίσι μήτ’ ἐπὶ τὴν πρώτην μάχην πέμψαι ἃ ἔπεμψαν, ἔς τε τὸ λοιπὸν μὴ οὐκέτι βούλωνται ἀμύνειν, ὁρῶντες τοὺς Ἀθηναίους ἐν τῇ μάχῃ εὖ πράξαντας, προσχωρῶσι δ’ αὐτοῖς κατὰ τὴν προτέραν φιλίαν πεισθέντες.
And learning that the Athenians were sending an embassy to Kamarina based on the alliance made in the time of Laches, to see if they could win them over, they also sent a counter-embassy of their own; for the Kamarinaeans were suspected by them, lest they had not sent with goodwill even for the first battle what they did send, and for the future they might no longer wish to assist in defense, seeing that the Athenians had succeeded in the battle, but might go over to them, being persuaded by their former friendship.
§6.75.4ἀφικομένων οὖν ἐκ μὲν Συρακουσῶν Ἑρμοκράτους καὶ ἄλλων ἐς τὴν Καμάριναν, ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν Ἀθηναίων Εὐφήμου μεθ’ ἑτέρων, ὁ Ἑρμοκράτης ξυλλόγου γενομένου τῶν Καμαριναίων βουλόμενος προδιαβάλλειν τοὺς Ἀθηναίους ἔλεγε τοιάδε.
When, therefore, Hermocrates and others arrived at Kamarina from Syracuse, and Euphemus with others from the Athenians, an assembly of the Kamarinaeans was held, and Hermocrates, wishing to prejudice them beforehand against the Athenians, spoke as follows.

Notes

  1. 6.75.1δι’ ἐλάσσονος — The preposition διά with the genitive neuter comparative ἐλάσσονος implies the omission of a noun like διαστήματος (distance, interval). It means 'over a shorter distance' or 'within a narrower compass.' By extending their walls, the Syracusans ensured that the enemy could not easily blockade them (εὐαποτείχιστοι) with a shorter circumvallation.
  2. 6.75.2τῆς τε γῆς — A partitive genitive serving as the direct object of the verb ἔτεμον (the third-person plural aorist active indicative of τέμνω, 'to ravage'), meaning they ravaged 'a part of their land.'
  3. 6.75.3μὴ προθύμως ... προσχωρῶσι δ’ — A complex structure of suspicion dependent on the adjective ὕποπτοι. (1) μὴ ... πέμψαι is an infinitive construction expressing suspicion regarding a past action ('that they had not enthusiastically sent...'). (2) ἔς τε τὸ λοιπὸν μὴ οὐκέτι βούλωνται is a subjunctive clause expressing apprehension for the future ('lest for the future they should no longer wish...'), where μὴ οὐκέτι introduces a negative fear. (3) προσχωρῶσι δ’ is another subjunctive parallel to βούλωνται ('and lest they should go over to them'). The construction shifts from past grievance (infinitive) to future anxiety (subjunctives).

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §6.75.1-6.75.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:6.75.1-6.75.4

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